Drawing upon case studies on the type of white-collar offenders frequently called “crisis responders”, this article critically examines Sampson and Laubs general theory on informal social control. In the article, this theory is for the first time confronted with data not used in its development and prior testing. Based on the evidence, the theory retains its validity for the white-collar offenders considered, insofar as their crime was closely connected to a perceived threat of identity loss, distrust in social support obtainable from others, and lack of supervision and monitoring at workplace. At the same time, the argument is made that the notion of interdependence relied upon in this theory needs to be developed more fully if it is to take into account the kind of dependency relations tying these particular offenders to their environment.

Alalehto, T. (2000). The act of economic crime: The logic of dirty business and normative restrictions in the Swedish restaurant industry. Journal of Scandinavian Studies in Criminology and Crime Prevention, 1, 156-177. doi:10.1080/140438500300076153

Mackenzie, D. L., & Li, S. D. (2002). The impact of formal and informal social controls on the criminal activities of probationers. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 39, 243-276.
doi:10.1177/002242780203900301